Guild Wars 2 Jotun race revealed

The latest race to join Guild Wars 2, the Jotun, has been revealed by ArenaNet.

The Jotun are described as a race who were once kings of the land but have since lost their command of magic and technology.

In a blog post on the official website, writer Ree Soesbee stated the studio wanted to bring the new race to the Norn areas of the world in particular.

Compared to the original Guild Wars, the Jotun are taller and more intelligent, which Soesbee explains helps to depict them as relatable characters. The changes help “to better illustrate the race’s history and the fact that they are sentient, smart creatures – not rock-tossing droolers.”

“The primitivism we see in their clothing and weapons is a sharp contrast to the magical monuments located at their camps – and that, too, is deliberate. Showing the decline of a race from power and civilisation into primitivism, all because they could not stop fighting amongst themselves, is important to the game’s theme.”

Guild Wars 2 will go into open beta this March and will launch in 2012.

So we’re seeing the race has been ever so slightly retconned. I’ll be interested to see how many variations or even complete changes they’ve made to the game compared to the original title – considering they hope users will eventually go back to Guild Wars, which might by the time of GW2’s release feel like an entirely different world.